The Invertebrate family consists one of the biggest family inside the animal‘s kingdom with over 1.000.000 species all over the world. In Greece there are recorded 27.000 species from which the 4.000 are endemics and it is estimated that there are more species which have not yet been traced. Their main characteristics are that they lack a notochord or a spinal column (as their Latin name also indicates) and they have a vast diversity.

One of the numerous, in species, phylum of the Invertebrates are the Mollusks (ex. Snails) and the Arthropods. At the Arthropod phylum there are many classes like the Arachnid (ex. spiders, scorpions, mites etc.), the Crustaceans (ex. crabs, shrimps, etc.), the Millipedes (ex. centipedes etc.), the Insects etc.

The biggest and the most various class of the Invertebrates and of the whole animal kingdom, are the Insects, where until now it counts 1.1 million recorded species. Their body is consisted of three parts (head, thorax and abdomen) and they are characterized by three main variations, a) they have external mouthparts, b) three pairs of legs and c) usually they have two pairs of wings at their thoracic area. Some of them have one pair or none.

Some of the biggest classes of the Insects are the Hymenoptera (ex. wasps, bees, ants etc), the Coleoptera (ex. beetles, etc), the Diptera (ex, mosquitos, flies etc.) and the Ledidoptera (ex. butterflies, moths, etc).

The Lepidoptera have two membranous wings which are covered with overlapping scales which variegate in size, shape and color. Also they have mouthparts with the form of sucking tube.

The Rodopi Mountain Range is one of the most significant biotopes of Greece for the Lepidoptera. Particularly in the RMRNP there are 180 species of Lepidoptera from the 235 which have been recorded in whole Greece. Many of them are endemic of the Rodopi Mountain Range and the mountain Falakro and they are referred to the The Red Data Book of Greece as vulnerable.

Following there is an indicative table of the Invertebrates of the RMRNP:

Lepidoptera of the Rodopi Mountain Range National Park (RMRNP) and conservation status

No

SCIENTIFIC NAME

RED LIST of THREATENED SPECIES of GREECE

IUCN Red List

BERN CONVENTION

CITES

HABITATS DIRECTIVE 92/43/EEC

Papilionidae

1

Iphiclides podalirius L.

2

Papilio machaon L.

3

Zerynthia polyxena Denis & Schiffermüller

II

IV

4

Allancastria cerisy Godart

5

Parnassius apollo L.

VU

II

II

IV

6

Parnassius mnemosyne L.

II

IV

Pieridae

7

Aporia crataegi L.

8

Pieris brassicae L.

9

Pieris rapae L.

10

Pieris ergane Geyer

11

Pieris mannii Mayer

12

Pieris napi L.

13

Pontia edusa Fabricius

14

(Pontia chloridice Hübner

EN

15

Euchloe ausonia Hubner

16

Anthocharis cardamines L.

17

Colias crocea Geoffroy

18

Colias alfacariensis Ribbe

19

Colias erate Esper

20

Gonepteryx rhamni L.

21

Gonepteryx cleopatra L.

22

Leptidea sinapis L./( Leptidea reali Reissinger)

23

Leptidea duponcheli Staudinger

Riodinidae

24

Hamearis lucina L.

Libytheidae

25

Libythea celtis Fuessli

Lycaenidae

26

Thecla betulae L.

27

Neozephyrus quercus L.

28

Satyrium acaciae Fabricius

29

Satyrium ilicis Esper

30

Satyrium w-album Knoch

31

Satyrium pruni L. (syn. Strymonidia prumi L.)

32

Satyrium spini Denis & Schiffermüller

33

Callophrys rubi L.

34

Lycaena phlaeas L.

35

Lycaena dispar Haworth (Distributed only in N. Greece)

VU

LR(nt)

II

II/IV

36

Lycaena virgaureae L.

37

Heodes (Lycaena) alciphron Rottemburg

38

(Lycaena ottomanus Lefèbvre)

VU

39

Lycaena tityrus Poda

40

Lycaena thersamon Esper

41

Lycaena candens Herrich-Schäffer

42

Lampides boeticus L.

43

Leptotes pirithous L.

44

Cupido decoloratus Staudinger(Distributed mostly in the RMRNP)

45

Cupido alcetas Hoffmannsegg

46

Cupido argiades Pallas (Distributed mostly in the borders of the RMRNP)